


Third Time's the Charm

by Anonymous033



Series: For However Far We Run [1]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-01
Updated: 2015-05-01
Packaged: 2018-03-26 15:35:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3855910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonymous033/pseuds/Anonymous033
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Now, she was not only late—she had also made the mistake of leaving her boss’ boss’ boss’ son standing in the lobby of the building that belonged to his family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Third Time's the Charm

**Author's Note:**

> AU. The Island never happened; Robert Queen is alive, and Oliver works for his father at Queen Consolidated. Prior to this, he and Felicity had never met.

Shit.

Shit shit shit.

She was late. She was _so_ late.

She wouldn’t have been, but she had accidentally spilt coffee on herself earlier that morning. That had set her back a good fifteen minutes because she had neglected to do her laundry the previous weekend and had exhausted her supply of clean clothes throughout the week. Laziness did come with a price—she had no spare tops to wear.

It took a good amount of digging to unearth a tight but professional-looking dress, bought by her mother in celebration of Felicity’s ‘first white-collar job,’ which Felicity had shoved crumpled into the back of her closet because tight dresses weren’t her thing. A quick iron fixed the creases, though, and she was soon out the door.

She was still late.

And she could now hear someone yelling across the Queen Consolidated lobby for her to ‘Hold the elevator!’ but her boss was a hard-ass who would undoubtedly penalize her for lost minutes, and the building had _way_ too many floors for her to be comfortable with the time the additional stop would cost her.

So, she did the immoral thing and jabbed at the ‘Close doors’ button instead.

But then she made the mistake of looking up—into the face of one very pissed-off Oliver Queen, who was rapidly being blocked off by the closing elevator doors.

Frantically, she hammered at the ‘Open doors’ button, but it was too late. The elevator had already started moving.

Nervously swallowing the lump in her throat, Felicity wrapped her hands around her elbows and shifted her weight onto one foot. Now, she was not only late—she had also made the mistake of leaving her boss’ boss’ boss’ son standing in the lobby of the building that belonged to his family.

Oh boy. It would be a small miracle if she could escape the workday intact.

_——————————_

Lunch was usually enjoyable, as it was a reprieve from both her boss and the claustrophobic, isolated confines of her office.

She felt the beginnings of a smile on her face for the first time that day as she rode the elevator down to the lobby so that she could head off to her favourite diner for lunch.

As would be her misfortune, however, the elevator decided to make a pit stop on its way down and opened its doors—to the infamous Oliver Queen.

Mortified, she ducked her head and stepped aside, no longer smiling. He entered and pressed a button—she dared not look up to see which one. She couldn’t even make sense of the fact that he was on one of the lower floors. As with a food pyramid, the Queen Consolidated building was laid out according to pecking order—the man’s office was on a floor much, much higher than hers.

But all of that was irrelevant, as she could now feel his gaze burning into the side of her head.

“You’re the one who didn’t hold the elevator,” he accused her.

It _was_ too late to hope that he didn’t recognize her.

Nervously, she pushed her glasses up her nose. “Yes,” she confessed, squeezing her eyes shut. Of course, that would be the moment her mouth decided that a single-word answer should be expanded. “Yes—okay, yes. I was gonna lie and ask you what you were talking about, but lying is wrong and _definitely_ not a good idea when it’s the CEO’s son, and I’m so, so sorry, but I was running late and my boss—I mean, he’s not a bad person—he’s just … not a _good_ person—am I fired yet?”

A prolonged silence greeted her. Cautiously, she peeked open an eye. The man was staring at her with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

“So…” he said slowly, “Am I firing you for not holding an elevator, or for making negative comments about your boss?”

It was only the amusement growing on his visage which convinced her that he was joking. (Hopefully.)

The elevator dinged, and he stepped out into the lobby. Hastily, she followed him.

“Neither?” she proposed. “I _am_ a very valuable member of the IT department. That doesn’t say much, considering you don’t know me or the IT department, but I can assure you that I’m being kept around for a reason. And since that reason is obviously _not_ my ability to provide customer service in a very efficient and professional manner, you can assume that I’m very, very good at technological expertise.”

The noise her partner made in response could almost qualify as a laugh. “It wouldn’t be too far of a stretch,” he agreed.

She peered hopefully up at him as they came to a stop outside the building. “So, I can keep my job, right?”

He opened his mouth to tell her. But then decided against it, apparently, because he closed his mouth again. With a smirk teasing the edges of his lips, he turned on his heel and started down the steps in the opposite direction.

“But Mr Queen!” she protested, taking a step towards him but not going any further.

He merely raised a hand and waved it in a dismissive manner. “Mr Queen’s my father!” he replied without glancing back at her.

_——————————_

She kept her eyes on the (metaphorical) ticking clock at the corner of her computer screen, rejoicing a little as 4.55PM turned into 4.56PM. Despite her boss, she usually liked being at work and often even stayed late to finish her projects. The day, though, had been entirely too _long._ All she looked forward to now were her fluffy bathrobe, a glass of wine, and her brand spanking new DVD boxset of her favourite television series.

“Felicity Smoak?” a voice asked politely from the doorway, breaking through her thoughts. Her head jerked up involuntarily.

Oh no.

“Mr Qu—” she started, hoping her voice wasn’t trembling. “Um.”

“Oliver,” he answered with a smile. “Just Oliver.”

“Right.” ‘Just Oliver’ he might be, but she wouldn’t be taking the liberty of calling him that. “Is—is there something you wanted?”

His smile turned into an outright grin. “Just letting you know that you are expected to be back here on Monday, 9 o’clock sharp.”

She hummed. “I assumed that I was expected to be back here on Monday, considering I received no notice. And that even if I’d received notice, you’d still have to give me two weeks. And I was joking. Mostly. So, hopefully you were too—which you’ve just proved.” She gave him a big smile. “Thanks for the confirmation.”

He chuckled and stepped forwards, using two of his fingers to extend a business card. “I also wanted to give you this.”

She accepted it, absently wondering why he would offer her his business card—and then she looked down at it and frowned in confusion. “HR?” she questioned.

“Human Resources,” he clarified, even though that wasn’t what she was asking. He cleared his throat and clasped his hands together. “The way you were talking about your boss made me think that it’s about more than being late. Whatever your issue with him is, I realize I can’t just storm into his office and demand proper treatment from him. But if you go through the correct channels, maybe we can do something about it. If you want us to, that is.”

“Thanks,” she replied gratefully, her voice a little thick. “It’s nothing I can’t handle, but I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome.”

The room fell silent, but still Oliver made no move to leave. Felicity arched her eyebrows at him. “So, how’d you find me, anyway? I don’t remember telling you my name.”

“And yet, you were worried about me firing you,” he countered with a laugh. “I just asked for the girl with very bad customer service and very good IT expertise. And what do you know? All roads lead to you.”

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him. “You didn’t really ask for me like that, did you?”

“No,” he admitted. “But I don’t reveal all my secrets the first time I meet someone.”

“Technically, we’ve met three times,” she pointed out. “And saying it like that makes it sound like we’ll meet again.”

“You never know.” He shrugged. “Maybe I’ll see you around, Ms Smoak.”

“Felicity,” she corrected almost reflexively.

The corners of his eyes crinkled. “Felicity,” he conceded, sounding inordinately pleased, and then he turned to leave.

Oh, wow. The butterflies she felt in her stomach as she watched him amble down the corridor towards the elevators were definitely not from the burger she had had earlier that day.

* * *

Crossposted to: [Tumblr](http://anonymous033.tumblr.com/post/111236318837/third-times-the-charm-an-oliver-felicity)


End file.
